Cuban duo Ajete-Cardona in quarterfinals of 2023 World Rowing Championships

HAVANA, Cuba, Sep 4 (ACN) The Cuban duo of Carlos Ajete and Reidy Cardona advanced today to the quarterfinals of the World Rowing Championships in Belgrade, Serbia, by finishing first in one of the repechage heats of the short sculls double pair (2x), to be held until next Thursday in the Ada Cigaganlija Park canal of the Sava River.

According to the International Federation website www.worldrowing.com, Ajete and Cardona crossed first the finish line located 2,000 meters from the start with a time of 6:47.31 minutes, followed by the crews from Bulgaria (6:48.17) and Uruguay (6:48.37), which also won the tickets.

Ajete and Cardona had to row in the repechage, since in heat three they finished in fifth place with a time of 6:19.32 minutes, behind China (6:11.88), Italy (6:13.00), Lithuania (6:16.48) and Greece (6:16.62).

The quarterfinals will be held on Wednesday and the Cubans will line up in lane one, followed by the doubles of Greece, Germany, Ireland and South Africa, all in the fight to get one of the three slots for the A/B semifinals, with the goal of advancing to the A or B finals.

In the A finals, the medals and places up to six are up for grabs, while in the B finals, the rungs from seven to 12, and only 11 of the participating 2x men's open weight will qualify for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.

This event is the first of the competitions that grant tickets for the Paris multisport competition, which will be joined by another world championship scheduled for May 2024, as well as the continental pre-Olympics, but only for the lightweight categories.

The best performances of Cuban rowing in the Olympic Games date back to Barcelona 1992, in men's rowing, and Sydney 2000, in women's rowing.